Senators say yes to legal marijuana
The Senate voted to approve the Cannabis Act on Thursday evening, overcoming the last major legislative hurdle to recreational marijuana legalization.
The vote on Bill C-45, a key piece of Liberal legislation establishing a legal framework for adult consumption and a regulated cannabis industry, happened after months of debate by an unusually active Senate. The bill now heads back to the House of Commons, where members of Parliament have to decide whether to accept more than 40 amendments senators made to the act.
These include giving provinces the right to ban home growing, giving Parliament, including the Senate, the right to vote on the introduction of future products such as edibles and vaporizers, and banning promotion by cannabis companies on merchandise and non-cannabis objects.
If the government decides it can live with the amendments then royal assent, the final stage in the legislative process, could be days or weeks away. If it decides to reject certain amendments, the bill could end up bouncing back and forth between the Senate and the House over the next month or so. “There are procedural mechanisms in place that would allow that to happen on an expedited basis,” said Trina Fraser, who leads the cannabis group for Ottawa law firm Brazeau Seller Law. “I think everyone understands they don’t get their summer recess until this is all hashed out, so there’s certainly incentive for everybody to be reasonable.” Royal assent, when it comes, doesn’t mean adults will be able to buy legal cannabis immediately. The federal government has indicated there will be an eight- to 12-week transition period before the act comes into full force, giving different levels of government time to adapt to regulations and companies time to begin moving product.
That means legal sales will likely begin in September or October, with provinces starting at different times depending on local legislation.
The past two months have seen a flurry of activity in the upper chamber, with five committees struck to examine everything from the impact of legalization on Indigenous communities to its effect on Canada’s international relationships and obligations.
Much of the debate revolved around competing visions of how to protect youth and promote public health. Those in favour of the bill argued that prohibition had done little to prevent usage while fuelling the black market and burdening the justice system. Those against the bill warned that official support for cannabis could lead to a range of negative health and social outcomes, particularly for youth.
In the end, the vote happened largely along party lines, with Conservatives voting against the bill and the Independent Senators Group, made up largely of former Liberals, voting in its favour.
Of the amendments the House of Commons now has to deal with, most are small and technical. A few, however, could have significant implications for both provinces and the emerging regulated industry.
The most important is the Senate’s decision to give provinces the right to ban marijuana growing at home. Bill C-45 will let people legally grow up to four marijuana plants, a move opposed by both Quebec and Manitoba. The Senate’s amendment is an attempt to get ahead of a Charter fight between the two provinces and the federal government, but it’s unclear Ottawa will be willing to give up jurisdiction.